1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a light emission control device and a light emission control method for controlling a light emission device.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, an imaging device, which can capture an image with allowing a light emission device such as a flash device to emit light, performs a preliminary light emission (hereinafter referred to as a pre-flash), performs light metering of reflected light of the preliminary light emission through a multi-segment light metering sensor (hereinafter referred to as a pre-light metering), and calculates a light emission amount at the time of a main light emission, based on the measurement result.
For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 6-250254 discusses a flash control device that performs light amount control based on a light metering value of flash preliminary light emission in a light metering area corresponding to a focusing region determined by a multipoint focus detection.
However, in the flash control device discussed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 6-250254, as a ratio of a subject region occupying the light metering area corresponding to the focusing region is smaller, it may be difficult to accurately calculate a light emission amount at the time of a main light emission. Specifically, a ratio of a subject occupying one light metering area may be small, so that an region where a pre-flash is not reflected, even if the pre-flash is performed, may be included, or a region where a pre-light emission is reflected at higher reflectance than a subject may be included. In this case, when an where no pre-flash is reflected is included, a light metering value in a pre-flash of a corresponding light metering area becomes smaller than an originally assumed value and when the region where the pre-flash is reflected at higher reflectance than the subject is included, the light metering value becomes greater than the originally assumed value. Hence, the light emission amount at the time of the main light emission becomes greater or smaller than an appropriate light emission amount with respect to the subject.